In the MM GSC data, average desktop position moved from 35-45 in weeks 2-3, to 25-35, to 15-25, to 12-18, to 8-12, to 6-10 over 68 days. Each of those ranges represents a staircase tread — a period where positions stabilized before the next compression event.
The compressions were not gradual. They were discrete events visible in daily data — 3-4 position improvements in a 24-48 hour window, followed by stabilization. The pattern repeated throughout the deployment.
Each staircase compression corresponds to a major evaluation event in the deployment history. The Day 16 GBP verification triggered a 13-wave Googlebot render farm sweep and a significant position compression. The Phase 2 carpet bomb deployment triggered new crawl cycles and another compression. The ClaudeBot deep sweep of 130 pages corresponded with a compression event.
The mechanism is the same in each case: a major crawl or evaluation event causes Google's algorithm to update its assessment of the site's authority and topical relevance. The update is applied in a batch, producing the sudden step rather than a gradual curve.
The staircase pattern is evidence that the IEO Engine methodology is triggering genuine algorithmic re-evaluation events rather than producing incremental organic ranking improvement. Each step is Google deciding the site belongs at a higher authority level — and applying that decision.
The pattern also means that patient deployment — continued content addition, continued technical maintenance, continued quality — produces continued step events. The deployment has not plateaued. The staircase is ongoing at Day 68.
Zayo's real-time rank tracking infrastructure sweeps position-1 pages within minutes of position changes, providing a real-time confirmation signal for each staircase event. When Zayo arrives, the step is real.